Latest news with #Cricket
Al Jazeera
5 minutes ago
- Sport
- Al Jazeera
Gambhir, groundsman and glory – tense England-India series reaches finale
Who: England vs India What: Fifth and final Test of India tour Where: The Oval in London, United Kingdom When: Thursday, July 31 England and India head to the Oval for the decisive fifth and final Test of a hard-fought campaign on Thursday, with both teams battling mental and physical fatigue. A congested schedule of five Tests in less than seven weeks has proved gruelling, especially for the fast bowlers from both teams, with every match going the distance so far. The series has taken its toll on a number of players, including crucially England captain, Ben Stokes, who has been ruled out of the match. Al Jazeera Sport takes a look at a Test that has plenty bubbling over both on and off the field. What is at stake in the final Test of India's tour of England? Remarkably, India can still end the series all square at 2-2 after salvaging an unlikely draw in the fourth Test at Old Trafford. The tourists kept the hosts on the field for 143 overs in their second innings, despite the draw being inevitable in the end, as Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar secured centuries. Why has the England-India series been so tense? Tensions spiked at the end of the fourth Test when India allowed Jadeja and Sundar to complete their centuries after England captain Ben Stokes offered to shake hands on a draw. There was also a finger-pointing incident during the third Test at Lord's in London, when England opener Zak Crawley irked the Indians, who believed he was time-wasting at the end of the third day. Crawley and opening partner Ben Duckett had a tricky two-over spell to navigate before stumps, but the former stood away from his crease on fourth occasions in the opening over before Jasprit Bumbrah could bowl. The Kent batter also called for the physio, resulting in only one over being bowled before the close and India captain Shubman Gill confronting Crawley about his actions. What happened between Gambhir and the Surrey groundsman at the Oval? As if the series wasn't already enduring heightened emotions, India coach Gautim Gambhir was embroiled in an incident with the head groundsman at the Oval. Video footage showed Gambhir in a confrontation with Lee Fortis, Surrey County Cricket Club's lead curator at the Oval in south London. Fortis was understood to have been keeping a protective eye on the square during India's training session. Gambhir, a 58-Test veteran, was seen wagging his finger as Fortis looked on, stating, 'You can't tell us what to do' and 'You don't tell any of us what to do.' Gambhir could also be heard adding, 'You're just the groundsman, nothing beyond.' After walking away in conversation with India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak, who appeared to take on the role of mediator, Fortis told Gambhir he may be forced to lodge a complaint against him, drawing a response of, 'You can go and report to whoever you want.' Kotak later told reporters that Fortis's objections to a cooler being wheeled onto the square kicked off the spat. 'He was sitting on the roller, he shouted and told the support staff not to take it there,' Kotak said. 'It is good to be a little possessive, and it is also good to be protective, but not that much. Gautam just said, 'Do not talk to the support staff like this.'' Kotak added, 'At the end of the day, it is a cricket pitch. It is not an antique where you can't touch.' Gill added, 'What happened yesterday, I thought, is just absolutely unnecessary. I mean, it's not the first time that we were having a look at the wicket.' How has Gill been rated as India captain? Captaincy appears to be doing wonders for the career of previously inconsistent India batsman Shubman Gill. The elegant 25-year-old scored his fourth century of an extraordinary debut series as skipper at Old Trafford. He came in with the tourists in dire straits at 0-2 in their second innings, responding with a marathon 103 in 238 balls that laid the foundations for a great escape. Gill has set a new record for the most runs scored by an India batsman in a series against England of 722, surpassing teammate Yashasvi Jaiswal's tally of 712 in 2023/24. At the Oval, he could eclipse Sunil Gavaskar's all-time India series record of 774 runs, set in a four-match campaign against the West Indies in 1971. England team news England captain Stokes has been ruled out of the Test with a right shoulder injury. Ollie Pope, who bats at three, will replace Stokes as skipper, the England and Wales Cricket Board said on Wednesday. Stokes said he expects to be sidelined for up to seven weeks, which should in no way impact his participation in this winter's Ashes series in Australia. But he felt it was clearly too risky playing one more Test against India. 'It is one of those of weighing up the risk-reward, and the risk was way too high for damaging this any further than it currently is,' he said. 'I wouldn't expect to put any of my players at risk with an injury like this. Once this series is done, I was feet up anyway [so] it doesn't really make too much difference to what I've got from the end of the series up until the winter.' England must also decide whether to risk express paceman Jofra Archer, who has bowled nearly 90 overs in two Tests after more than four years of injury-enforced exile. The home team took just four wickets on a flat Old Trafford pitch during India's battling second innings, with seamer Brydon Carse also worked hard. Jamie Overton has been added to an England squad that already has extra pace options in Josh Tongue and Gus Atkinson. India team news India will be without vice-captain and prolific runscorer Rishabh Pant, who sustained a foot fracture in Manchester. Jasprit Bumrah's back injury earlier this year prompted India to announce the fast bowler would only feature in three games during the current series. The world's top-ranked Test bowler made his third appearance on a docile pitch in Manchester and has little time to recover after bowling a gruelling 33 overs, during which he took two wickets. But India coach Gautam Gambhir says all of his squad's quicks are fit for the finale, including Akash Deep, who took 10 wickets in Bumrah's absence during India's 336-run win in the second Test at Edgbaston before suffering a groin injury in the next match at Lord's. The Oval curator breaks silence! • Lee Fortis, The Oval's chief curator, speaks out• Opens up on fiery exchange with Gautam Gambhir• What triggered the confrontation? Reports 📽️ @Sahil_Malhotra1 🏏 Full coverage 👇 #INDvsENG… — TOI Sports (@toisports) July 29, 2025
The Guardian
5 minutes ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Star attractions absent as scheduling stymies blockbuster Test finale
Much like the Dude in the Big Lebowski during his various moments of confusion, it was impossible not to repeatedly blink upon seeing England's XI for the fifth and final Test against India that starts today. Four changes, including the loss of Ben Stokes and Ollie Pope's return to the captaincy, took a few moments to process. 'I don't want to eat my words but the likelihood I won't play is very unlikely,' said Stokes after the end to the stalemate at Old Trafford. While that quote needed scanning a few times, so did the gnarly right shoulder he was seen prodding and poking during what was a chastening failure to claim an unassailable 3-1 series lead. A grade-three tear to 'a muscle I can't pronounce' was the upshot, Stokes confirmed on Wednesday, and his summer is now frustratingly over. Not that some changes were not expected here. A series played on heartbreaking surfaces has left the quicks on both sides walking like a gaggle of C3POs, although Chris Woakes, among those to play four, will go again. It would have been cruel to deny him in some ways, with the Oval pitch – battleground for the spat between Gautam Gambhir, India's head coach, and Lee Fortis, Surrey's groundsman – the greenest to date. Those who have missed out may end up cursing their misfortune. They are Brydon Carse, tapped out after bowling 155 overs across four Tests, and Jofra Archer, wisely stood down after 88.3 across two on his comeback from major injury. And there is also no Liam Dawson, which Stokes insisted was more about the need for a fourth seamer rather than his Test return being more tight than triumphant. Spin will instead come from the returning Jacob Bethell and Joe Root – the less said about Harry Brook's lollipop off-breaks the better – with Gus Atkinson, Josh Tongue and Jamie Overton the seamers joining Woakes. England (confirmed): Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (c), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Jamie Overton, Josh Tongue. India (possible): Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (c), Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Shardul Thakur, Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna. While the broken foot that Rishabh Pant suffered in Manchester was a freak occurrence, India are still undecided about whether to risk Jasprit Bumrah. Flagged up at the start of the tour, his three-Test limit was reached in Manchester and, having broken down midway through the Sydney Test in January – a Test match India might otherwise have won – any decision not to breach it would be understandable, if not still a bit of a Jasprit bummer for spectators. Mohammed Siraj (139 overs) is second only to Woakes (167) on the over-o-meters. The question here, using a word administrators understand, is whether a mere three-day turnaround for such a blockbuster finale is good for the 'product'. In one sense it will mercifully move things on from the handshakes-at-drawn chat that followed India's great escape. But no Stokes, no Archer and possibly no Bumrah? The quality can only be reduced by the loss of three headliners and the weariness of those pushing through. Given what is on the line – England looking to win the first ever Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, India still able to share the spoils – it is suboptimal. People will blame the Hundred, starting as it does next week and for which all decks must be apparently cleared. But while that tournament is one factor, inbound tours rattling along at a rate of knots has long been par for the course. Gone are the days of the 1993 Ashes – to pluck one example – when Australia arrived in April, flew home at the end of August and the shortest gap between Tests was nine days. But international sides have far more commitments in the current sardine tin era and India's players also came into the series straight after the epic that is the Indian Premier League. Sign up to The Spin Subscribe to our cricket newsletter for our writers' thoughts on the biggest stories and a review of the week's action after newsletter promotion Back-to-back Tests are not a new phenomenon either. And in fairness, the schedulers were also not to know that a dry summer would create the featherbeds which have in turn pushed so many cast members into the red zone. (Contrary to popular belief, England have not asked for these: they just want pace and bounce). Nevertheless, as both captains stated before the match – albeit Stokes now England captain by proxy – just three days of rest does no one any favours. The Oval will still be full and new faces do bring some fresh intrigue at least. India may hand a debut to Arshdeep Singh — Anshul Kamboj may struggle to claim he is among those 'rested' — while Atkinson's return on his home ground is important for England in their final Test before the Ashes. And Bethell in for Stokes will inevitably be a talking point, given how accomplished he looked in New Zealand. Unlikely, admittedly, but if the last hour scenario at Old Trafford arises again in reverse, one wonders whether Pope will allow him to complete a first century in senior cricket. While India would love to end Shubman Gill's first outing as captain with a creditable 2-2 draw, there is also the broader picture for England. As has long been said, the so-called Bazball project will be defined by this series and the Ashes that follows. The hope now is that the finale of the first leg, box office in theory, will not be defined by the loss of Stokes and others who fell apart en route.
The Independent
2 hours ago
- Sport
- The Independent
Shubman Gill says pitch exchange with groundsman was ‘absolutely unnecessary'
India captain Shubman Gill has branded the intervention of Surrey's chief groundsman Lee Fortis 'absolutely unnecessary' ahead of his side's final Test against England. Fortis, the England and Wales Cricket Board's ground manager of the year for the past three seasons, was involved in a heated exchange with India's head coach Gautam Gambhir as the tourists netted at the Kia Oval on Tuesday. Tempers frayed with Fortis seemingly concerned about potential damage to the square and Gambhir clearly riled by the incident. The episode was in keeping with an increasingly bad-tempered series, with several flare-ups at Lord's and Old Trafford. 'As a captain, I don't know what it was all about. If a pitch creator is going to come and ask us to not look at the wicket or look at it from three metres behind, that is not something that has happened to us before,' he said. 'As long as I can remember there is no such instruction. If you are wearing rubber spikes or you are bare foot, I think you can see the wicket closely. 'What happened yesterday, I thought, is just absolutely unnecessary. A coach has every right to be able to go close quarters and have a look at the wicket.' There was no repeat of the spat as India netted on the eve of the match, though Fortis was patrolling the pitch and spoke to members of the coaching staff as they assessed a green-tinged surface that is expected to offer early assistance for the seamers. Gill had no qualms about the tetchy exchanges between the rival teams, which have encompassed rows over time-wasting, aggressive send-offs and England's annoyance over India's refusal to shake hands on an early draw in Manchester. 'I think the relations are fantastic but when you are on the field, you are trying to win a game at the end of the day,' he said. 'Both the teams have been very competitive and sometimes when you are competitive, in the heat of the moment, you do or say things that you might not do (normally). I think once the match is over, there is mutual respect between both the teams.' India are waiting until the toss to name their team but they are expected to resist the temptation to play star bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who has played three Tests he was initially earmarked for. That could mean a debut for left-armer Arshdeep Singh, while wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav may also come into consideration as the tourists seek to draw the series 2-2.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
England to hit more sixes and fours than India on course to victory in the fifth Test NOW 2/1 - as hosts look to clinch series win
Sky Bet have boosted odds on a typically aggressive England to hit more sixes and fours than India on course to victory in the fifth Test to 2/1. Ben Stokes men can clinch a series victory with a draw at the Oval, with the action set to get underway on Thursday. Ahead of the series finale, Sky Bet are offering a few Price Boosts, including England to Win the Match, Hit the Most Sixes & Hit the Most Fours, which has been enhanced from 7/4 to 2/1. Elsewhere, odds for Joe Root & Shubman Gill to both Score 100+ Match Runs Each & Either to Take a Catch have been boosted to 9/2. And Ben Duckett, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Yashasvi Jaiswal & Ravindra Jadeja to Hit a Six Each can now been got a 10/1. England are the 13/8 favourites for the Test match, with the 2/1 draw seen as slightly more likely than a 9/4 India win. England vs India Price Boosts: Joe Root & Shubman Gill to both Score 100+ Match Runs Each & Either to Take a Catch WAS 4/1 NOW 9/2 England to Win the Match, Hit the Most Sixes & Hit the Most Fours WAS 7/4 NOW 2/1 Ben Duckett, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Yashasvi Jaiswal & Ravindra Jadeja to Hit a Six Each WAS 8/1 NOW 10/1 England vs India Match Winner: England - 13/8 India - 9/4 Draw - 13/8
BBC News
5 hours ago
- Business
- BBC News
Big Bash to consider private ownership
Cricket Australia (CA) will consider private investment in the eight Big Bash franchises after a recommendation from a consulting firm. CA commissioned Boston Consulting Group (BCG) to recommend ways the Big Bash could "evolve and capitalise on the past 15 years of innovation and investment across Australian cricket".The report suggested that CA could seek alternative forms of investment and ownership – including allowing private ownership for the first say no timeline has seen set and they will work with state and territory bodies and Big Bash clubs as well as the players' union and its broadcast and commercial partners as it assesses the recommendations, promising a "thorough exploratory process".Other recommendations included schedule changes, with the tournament possibly starting on 26 December to avoid more of the Australia Test summer and increase player salary caps to draw more top-tier international players was described as a "key recommendation". CA chief executive Todd Greenberg said the BCG report was "strong validation" for the 15 years of innovation, fan engagement and success of the Big Bash."As well as creating amazing fan experiences, under its current operating model the League and its clubs are valuable assets with significant potential for growth."The success of the T20 format has been a huge boost for the game globally in attracting new audiences and increasing participation. We need to ensure that the Big Bash remains among the world's top sporting competitions."
